Madison - People found innocent of a crime can still be hurt by the accusation.That's because the charge remains in online court records in Wisconsin.A bill approved by a state Senate committee would change that.The bipartisan bill calls for erasing data from the public CCAP system when a person has been cleared.For civil forfeiture cases, the record would be removed within 90 days if the defendant has been acquitted or the case was dismissed.
The director would have to wipe out information on misdemeanor and felony cases within 120 days if the cases have been dismissed, the defendant was acquitted or if a conviction has been overturned on appeal.The Senate's judiciary committee approved the bill 5-0 Thursday, clearing the way for a full Senate vote. (Copyright 2014 Associated Press - All Rights Reserved)